This is a download from BBC Learning English.

To find out more, visit our website.

The English we speak.

From BBC learning English.

com. Hello and I'm waiting for Rob. I have some good news for Rob. I have some good news for him.

Oh hi Fay Faye. You're looking very pleased with yourself yes I am you

know that new singer were really really like and wanted to go and see you mean

Justin timber river yes him wanted to go and see. You mean Justin Timber River? Yes, him. And you know that his world tour is a sellout? There are no tickets left.

Yes, sadly. Well, look at these.

Wow, two tickets to see Justin Timber River in London tomorrow.

That's amazing. How did you manage to pull those out of the hat?

Uh, Rob, I didn't pull them out of anyone's hat. I used my own money to buy them from a friend.

No, Fay, if you pull something out of a hat, it means you produce something unexpectedly, by surprise, and it solves a problem.

Okay, I see. by surprise and it solves a problem.

Okay I see.

So these tickets are an unexpected surprise.

Yes, I thought we would never get any.

Let's hear some more examples while I calm down.

We thought we would never complete the project on time,

but somehow Javitt managed to pull it out of the hat.

Our team has had a bad season, but they still managed to pull a cup victory out of the hat by the end of it. So if you pull something out of a hat you do something that's not expected

and it makes a bad situation better. You can also say to pull something out of thin air, so it's like magic.

...